The present invention relates to an apparatus for assisting in the cooking of taco shells and thereafter allowing tacos made from the shells to be served from an upright position.
While tacos have become a very popular food product, tacos present a substantial problem in both cooking and serving, since they have a rather cumbersome shape. In particular, the taco shell is designed from a round tortilla that is bent to have a relatively arcuate center and two upstanding sides or ears. If the shells are cooked with one of the sides lying down, the resulting shell is normally flat or lopsided. In general, it has been found that the best position in which to cook the shells has either been in an upright position when baking or in a preformed position that is held by a special tool when deep fat frying.
Once the shells are cooked, they are relatively warm and cumbersome to fill with stuffing. It is preferred that the shells be held in an upright position after cooking so that stuffing such as ground beef, lettuce and cheese can be easily dropped into the shell from above. However, the present methods of cooking normally require that the shells be removed from the device in which they are cooked and then placed on plates or other holders specifically designed for the shells. This is time consuming and requires two separate utensils to do the two different jobs. Therefore, it is desirable to have an apparatus which allows the cooking of the shells in an upright position and yet also allows the shells to be then removed to an area for filling and serving while maintaining the shells in an upright position.
It is also desirable that such an apparatus be able to take advantage of conventional devices found in the kitchen, such as flat bottom or cookie pans. Finally, it is also desirable that the apparatus be constructed of heat retaining materials so as to aid in keeping the taco shells warm during stuffing of the shells and serving of the tacos.